Moon Township, Pa. – The RMU men's basketball team continued a five-game homestand Thursday at the UPMC Events Center, falling to Wright State, 75-73. The Colonials dipped to 2-14 (.125) overall during the 2021-22 season, including 0-7 in the Horizon League.
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
In a game that featured 14 ties and 19 lead changes, Wright State closed on an 8-2 run to earn the win. During its homestand, the Colonials have dropped the four games by a total of 13 points, and each of the 11 Horizon League games that RMU has hosted in its two years as a member of the league have been decided by six points or less. Grant Basile started the decisive run for the Raiders with a three-pointer to trim their deficit to 71-70 with 2:28 remaining, and Tanner Holden knocked down a pair of free throws to push Wright State (9-7 / 6-1 #HLMBB) in front for good, 72-71. Keaton Norris would go 1-for-2 at the stripe with 24.3 seconds to play to give the Raiders a 73-71 lead, but on the ensuing possession for RMU, the Colonials turned it over. Basile sealed the win with a pair from the chalk with 12 seconds left.
QUOTABLE
"I want our guys to feel some success because I think they're giving the effort, but it's just four plays, five plays," RMU Pat Gallagher Head Coach
Andrew Toole said. "We make the game so much harder for ourselves. We'll keep working to rectify those four plays or those five plays. It just kills you inside, because these guys are fighting hard and working hard. They're doing 85 percent of what we're asking of them to do on the floor. We have to get to 90 percent. There's never perfection, but we made four or five plays that allowed for easy baskets. That makes it really hard when you're going up against a really good offensive team."
EBB AND FLOW
Wright State owned a 65-58 cushion with just over eight minutes to go, but the Colonials responded with a 13-2 surge to grab a 71-67 lead. Sophomore guard
Kam Farris ignited the run with a driving layup and also knocked down a three-pointer that tied the game, 65-65. Basile knocked down a pair at the free-throw line to give the Raiders a 67-65 edge, but a layup from sophomore guard
Enoch Cheeks and four consecutive points from senior forward
Kahliel Spear, including a dunk, gave RMU its biggest lead of the second half.
ATTACK THE RIM
RMU owned a 38-36 edge in points in the paint, the 10th consecutive game the Colonials have scored at least 30 points in the lane. Farris led four players in double figures for RMU with 20 points, shooting 8-for-10 from the field, including 4-for-5 from beyond the arc. Spear and junior guard
Michael Green III each scored 15 points for the Colonials, while Cheeks chipped in 11. Green handed out a team-high five assists against no turnovers, Cheeks notched a game-high three steals and Spear finished with a pair of rejections. Basile led all scorers in the game for Wright State with 23 points on a 7-for-13 shooting performance from the field while going 7-for-8 at the line. He also added eight rebounds and three blocks.
QUOTABLE
"You can go back to the first half and Tim Finke gets a layup off a simple backscreen action that we guarded for the last three days," Toole said. "No communication and no help. Now you lose a two-point game. Maybe that was the two that we needed to take away from them. We just can't seem to find all those opportunities to make the game go in our favor."
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE
The Colonials converted at a 50.8 percent (30-for-59) clip from the field Thursday and overall during its homestand has shot 49.1 percent (107-for-218). Spear is leading the way for the Colonials, averaging 15.8 points and 4.0 rebounds while posting a field goal percentage of 69.2 percent (27-for-39).
UP NEXT
RMU wraps up its homestand Saturday, Jan. 15, with a 7:00 p.m. tip against Northern Kentucky at the UPMC Events Center.
Follow The Colonials: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube | RMU Athletics Gameday App
